Krafton, the makers of PUBG, registered a very large lawsuit, namely they sued the developers of Free Fire and Free Fire Max as well as Apple and Google.
The developers of Free Fire and Free Fire Max were sued for being accused of plagiarizing PUBG: Battlegrounds, Krafton's flagship PC battle royale game. Then Apple and Google were sued for taking part in distributing the game.
Even Krafton accused Google of promoting Free Fire and Free Fire Max through videos on YouTube containing the gameplay of the games. Also a number of posts containing a number of Chinese films that are considered a live action dramatization of PUBG: Battlegrounds.
Free Fire and Free Fire Max are games developed by Garena. Both on the App Store and Google Play, the games are called Garena Free Fire and Garena Free Fire Max, which are available for free and in-app purchases.
"Free Fire and Free Fire Max copy several aspects of Battlegrounds, individually or in combination, including the unique 'air drop' unlock feature that has been copyrighted, game and gameplay structure, combination and choice of weapons, armor, unique objects, locations, as well as the overall color scheme, materials and textures," Krafton wrote.
Krafton accused Garena of earning hundreds of millions of dollars from the sale of items in the game, as well as Apple and Google, which also received a portion of Free Fire's revenue in the App Store and Play Store.
Before registering this lawsuit, Krafton had asked Garena to stop the exploitation of Free Fire and Free Fire Max as soon as possible. This request was immediately rejected by Garena, as quoted by us from The Verge, Friday (14/1/2022).
Krafton also asked Apple and Google to stop the distribution of this game, but this request seems to be ignored because both Free Fire and Free Fire Max are currently still available on the App Store and Play Store.
YouTube was also asked to remove videos that showcase the gameplay of Free Fire and Free Fire Max, especially those that contain parts that are considered to be imitating elements in Battlegrounds. And the video is still showing on YouTube.
In his statement, Jason Golz, who is a spokesman for Sea - Garena's parent company - called Krafton's claims baseless. Meanwhile, Apple and Google have not issued a comment regarding this lawsuit.
Both PUBG Mobile and Free Fire are competitive and highly profitable games for both companies. During 2021, according to Sensor Tower data, Free Fire earned USD 1.1 billion in revenue, up 48% compared to its revenue in 2020.
Meanwhile, PUBG Mobile's revenue is much higher, namely USD 2.9 billion during 2021, but that figure is only an increase of 7% compared to 2022. From this it can be assumed that their revenue growth is being eroded by the popularity of Free Fire which continues to accelerate.